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Eight passengers are being treated in the local hospital in Nevsehir while one seriously injured passenger with multiple fractures has been transferred to the Kayseri University Hospital.

The holidaymakers were on a nine-day "Hidden Trail of Cappadocia" excursion when the accident occurred.

Mr Beurle's university profile said he enjoyed "gravitational-related activities" like mountaineering and skiing. He was also a scuba-diving instructor.

He was the lead Cassini programmer at QMUL where he developed software and designed other equipment for the spacecraft, which was launched in 1997 and is now orbiting Saturn.

Asun Knight-Markiegi, his next door neighbour in Streatham, south-west London, said she had known him for 23 years and was devastated by the news.

Explore Worldwide, the firm that organised the trip, said eight of the injured passengers were British and one was French.

Ahley Toft, the managing director, added: "This is a tragic accident. We are of course looking after those involved and liaising with their families and with those of other clients.

"We are shocked that such a popular activity should have resulted in such a tragic outcome."

He added that the company would help relatives with flights and accommodation if they wanted to fly to Turkey to be with their loved ones.

The flights cost around 250E per person and the tourists were on an early morning trip with Cappadocia Ballons, the oldest established company, and one of the most respected, in the region.

It had flown more than 50,000 passengers without incident before yesterday's crash. Weather conditions were said to be perfect when the balloons took off at around 6.30am.

Suat Ulusoy, a local balloon pilot, said he understood the accident happened when one balloon flew above another and its basket ripped open the envelope.

Asim Hacimustafaolgu, the Nevsehir regional governor, told a press conference: "We are still unsure as to the cause of the accident and whether Mr Beurle died on impact with the ground or jumped from the balloon in panic.

"The balloon had reached a height of 50 metres before it crashed back to earth. The army police, local prosecutor and authorities are now investigating."

Mr Miners, 31, who took up ballooning after flying across Cappadocia as a child and returned 20 years later to join the same company, was in charge of a sunrise flight over the "fairy chimney" landscape.

The operator of another balloon company in the town said the firm's pilots were "highly professional".

Up to 45 balloons fly in the area every day, reaching heights of 1,500ft and descending low enough to pick apricots from the trees.

One lucky couple from New Zealand missed the flight when they slept in. Vivienne Munro said: "We arrived just as the balloon was taking off. I was devastated. We were both looking forward to it so much. We started to walk away when we heard the commotion and realised the balloon had crashed. With hindsight we were both incredibly lucky."

The incident follows a recent hot-air balloon crash in Egypt in which two British women were injured.